Falcons lose 3-2 to the Providence Bruins, but get good looks at several players

MARLBOROUGH – Jobs, not wins, were on the minds of most of those who dressed for the Springfield Falcons’ preseason game with the Providence Bruins Wednesday night.

The Falcons, with a roster dotted with free-agent hopefuls mixed with a few assignees from the big club in Edmonton, dropped the exhibition 3-2 count, at the New England Sports Center.

Springfield fell behind 3-0, then closed to within one with late goals from Bryan Lundbohm and Dylan Stanley.

“It was good for us to play against another team,” said Rob Daum, who is beginning his first full season behind the Falcons bench. “We concentrated on evaluating our team, and we got a really good chance to do that tonight.”

If Daum was hoping to get a thorough look at certain of the Falcon hopefuls. he picked the right night to do it.

In the first period, Daum got to see how the candidates play in their own end, as they spent the lion’s share of the stanza in it.

He also got a good look at free-agent goalie Aaron Sarochan, late of the University of Alberta (one of Daum’s former coaching stops), who is vying for the backup job behind incumbent Devan Dubnyk.

Sarochan was pelted by 18 Providence shots in the first, stopped all but two of them, and looked sharp in the process.

His best save may have been the stop he stopped made on Holyoke native Adam Pineault, who rolled in on a breakaway at 6:36.

“It was revealing,” said Daum, who recruited Sarochan for Alberta, but didn’t coach him. “That’s the purpose of it. Pineault later netted the first goal, a tip in from just outside the crease at 8:35.

Later, with Providence operating a 5-on-3 power play, rookie defenseman Rob Kwiet blew in a shot from the left point.

The score held through the second period, during which Colton Fretter, a24-goal man last year for the Portland Pirates, had two Grade A scoring chances for the Falcons.

One of those was a 15 foot backhander that rattled off the crossbar.

EMPTY NETTERS: Hoping to make a return to Springfield is big left wing Adam Henrich, who was a Falcon from 2004-07, during the years of being affiliated with Tampa Bay. “Fortunately enough,” said Henrich, who notched assists on both goals, “I got a chance to be invited here. I’m just trying to battle to make the team, that’s all. Coming in every day and trying to be professional.” Henrich spent last season with Wilkes-Barre. . . . Pineault’s not the only interesting name on the Providence roster. Defenseman Mike Stuart, brother of Boston defenseman Mark Stuart, is in camp with the P-Bruins after playing in Europe last year. And Nick Tuzzolino, brother of former Bruin Tony, is also getting a shot. . . . Center Bryan Lundbohm wore the “C” for the Falcons. . . . Springfield’s final two preseason games, against Providence Friday at 7:30 and Worcester Saturday night at 7, will both be at the MassMutual Center. . . . Andrew Perugini (with Stockton ECHL last year) played the final 27 minutes in the Springfield net, and pulled off a handful of sparking saves.